Women Leaders: The Qualities and Attitudes For Success
Following our dreams and accepting our worth may feel overwhelming and scary at times. After all, when we step outside of our comfort zone, we may face challenges and even failures that have us wanting to turn back.
But when we learn how to forge ahead for success and to use those challenges to better ourselves and our lives, we can enjoy more freedom, opportunity, and happiness than ever before.
PixieLane is here to share what we’ve learned about female leadership and to help you access some of those essential qualities and attitudes that can help you succeed.
What Does It Mean to Be a Female Leader?
Being a woman leader often means guiding and inspiring others, but it’s important to focus on your own goals and ambitions as well. Good leaders do so by example, by putting in the hard work, coming up with creative ideas, and encouraging those around them to engage and share.
A good leader will bring others up with them, support their community, and never lose sight of their own goals and intentions.
Why Are Female Leaders Important?
Throughout history, leadership positions in politics, business, and the arts have often been held by their male counterparts, and women have been relegated to the sidelines. That’s one of the reasons female leadership is so essential for modern-day gender equality.
When women’s voices are in places where decisions get made, they can add to the conversation, bring up topics and insights that might not otherwise be discussed, and break down unfair and unjust systems that disregarded or blocked women's participation.
Women leaders also serve as role models, especially to young adults who are learning how to make their way in the world. If young women can see it, they can be it, and the more women leaders they can see, the better.
What Are the Most Important Traits of a Female Leader?
Being a female leader is important, but it can also feel a little overwhelming. When you’re feeling stalled or stuck on your journey, here are some of the top traits you can embrace to get going and feel inspired again.
Confidence
If you don’t feel confident right now, don’t worry. The phrase “Fake it ‘til you make it’ exists for a reason. However, the truth is that even powerful women often don’t take enough pride in the work they do, which can lead to low self-confidence.
If you find that you doubt yourself, take a step back. Look at your accomplishments and strengths so far and look at the distance you’ve covered since you’ve started. Your strengths, decision-making, and experiences will all speak for themselves and help show you all the reasons you don’t need to fake your confidence after all.
Resilience
We all face challenges. Whether we’re building something new, creating art, or starting a business, there are going to be days when it just feels like nothing is going our way. Trying new things means that we’ll struggle at times—and even fail.
It’s important to remember that failure is part of the process. It doesn’t matter that something doesn’t work the first time around or that a project or idea fell through. What matters is how you respond to the setback. Resilience is all about moving forward, even when you feel like stepping back.
Work-Life Balance
You’re in this for the long haul, and that means you can’t burn out in the first few years. Another important trait for women leaders to keep in mind is balance. After all, there’s no point in working so hard if you don’t get the chance to enjoy the effects of your labor. Balancing your work takes practice, and it means learning how to leave work at work, so you can enjoy time spent with family and friends.
All women can benefit from an improved work-life balance, be they political leaders, a Fortune 500 company CEO, an activist, wife, or mother.
This work-life balance also ensures that your work will be tighter, stronger, and more creative. You’ll feel well-rested, energized, and inspired, rather than just exhausted by trying to do too much.
Building Community
It’s important to remember that you’re not in this alone. Forging a community with other like-minded women leaders and women interested in your field or industry can help to provide you professional and personal support for leadership development.
You can share resources, discuss challenges, and provide motivation when things feel overwhelming. That community is one of the great benefits that you’ll enjoy as a woman leader.
Supporting Other Women
It’s also a great opportunity to support others who are at your current stage of leadership or perhaps in a place you have been before. Building something new takes patience, skills, and resources, and you’ll likely enjoy the support of many others on your journey.
As a woman leader, consider how you may share your support with your community so that we can continue bringing new women leaders up with us.
The Ability to Delegate
One of the best ways to achieve that ideal work-life balance is through delegation. This can be challenging, especially if you’re used to doing everything yourself. When you build a business or follow other professional goals, it can sometimes feel like you’re all on your own.
Learning how to delegate will give you the time and resources to focus on coming up with new ideas, meeting new people, and expanding and—most importantly—getting to enjoy your life with loved ones.
Take the Lead
There are many different ways to embrace your role as a woman leader, and the journey is going to vary for everyone. Whatever your next steps might be, and the next time you face your next big challenge, remember that women leaders are essential and that you’re helping to inspire more young women to follow their goals.
It’s important to find ways to trust and believe in your own skills as you grow and try new things. Stay confident, resilient, and supportive, and learn how to delegate tasks, balance your workload, and contribute to your community and you’ll find you can handle whatever the next challenge—and adventure—might bring.
Sources:
7 Leadership Lessons Men Can Learn From Women | Harvard Business Review
